How to Make a Computer Game
(the Easy Way)
An Introduction to 3rd-Person
Perspective Game Creation
Software
Jonathan Martin
Introduction
• What 3rd-person perspective is
– As opposed to 1st person (Doom)
• Show a video an actual game in 3rd person
perspective (NWN?)
• Examples of games
– Famous ones and recent!
Game Development
Free
Trade-offs of
the two
• Write from scratch more extremes
• Use middleware Renderware
package
• Modify existing gameProgramming Doom, Source
engine intensive (Half Life), Unreal
• Specialized game Game Maker,
construction software Torque 2D
• Genre-specific less
RPG Maker XP,
construction software AGS, NWN
Restrictive
Genre-Specific
Construction Software
• No Need to Reinvent
the Wheel
• Requires the least
amount of
programming
• Tend to have the
nicest user
interfaces
• This all comes at the
expense of freedom
Adventure Game Studio
• What can you do with it?
– Adventure games (―point-and-click‖)
– 2D only
– Can import art
– Descriptive Meaningful play
• Example games
– Maniac mansion (remake)
– King’s quest (remake)
Adventure Game Studio
• Easily create point-and-click interfaces
• Extra- feat (but not required): ―C-like‖ scripting
language for advanced functions
• Lucasarts-style conversation system should you
want to use it.
• Supports wide variety of file types
– Audio: OGG, MP3, WAV, MOD, XM, MIDI
– Video: BMP, PCX, PNG, GIF, TGA
• Distribute your game on Windows, Linux or OSX
(Mac)
Adventure Game Studio
• Supports a multitude of display modes
– 320x200, 320x240, 640x400, 640x480,
800x600
– 256-color, 16-bit color and 32-bit color
– Anti-aliasing and alpha blending supported in
certain modes
• Inventory Support Built-In
• Plugin System for Advanced Users
Adventure Game Studio
• Demo
– What is going to be shown?
• And create a room
– What we are going to do?
RPG Maker XP
• What can you do with it?
– Adventure games (―point-and-click‖)
– 2D only
– Can import art
– Descriptive Meaningful play
• Example games
– Maniac mansion (remake)
– King’s quest (remake)
Also see…
RPG Maker XP
• Create 2D tile-based
RPG’s
• Point and Click interface
similar to AGS
• Also has databases for
Monsters, Weapons,
Items, Stats, Characters,
Skills…just about
anything you’ve seen in a
16-bit era RPG
Now Let’s Get a Little More Advanced…
Game Maker
• Room/object
paradigm
• Doesn’t have built-
in functions like
RPG Maker and
AGS
• Simple but
powerful scripting
language
Also see…
Neverwinter Nights
Aurora Toolkit
• Create RPG scenarios
in the 3D Neverwinter
Nights engine
• Possible to create
original content, but
requires a lot of work
NVW
• http://nwn.bioware.com/players/profile_uof
a.html
• Talk about its popularity: estimate of
number of games created
• Mention the U. Alberta thing
NVW
• Example scenario
Remember…
• 3D graphics not necessary!!
• Use the tools you are most comfortable
with, not what you believe is inherently
―better‖
• Small amount of programming knowledge
still required
• Test your game as you are making it—
Iterative Design!
Resources
• http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/
• http://www.gamemaker.nl/
• http://www.enterbrain.co.jp/tkool/RPG_XP/
eng/
• http://nwn.bioware.com/builders/